Lt. Vance: investigation to take months

NEWTOWN, Conn. (WTNH) -- As the face of the state police department, he keeps the public informed, but on Friday, his job became so much more difficult.

Lieutenant J. Paul Vance was the one who had to stand in front of the microphones and tell us that 26 people had been killed at Sandy Hook Elementary.

Folks in Connecticut are familiar with  Lt. J Paul Vance but even he admits telling us all, telling the world what happened at Sandy Hook was difficult, heartbreaking.

"This was a tragic situation, a horrific crime. This is a difficult time for everybody," Lt. Vance said.

The Lt. was on scene at the school, there at the firehouse as panicked parents received word their child had been killed, yet able to keep it all together in  the glare of dozens of cameras.

Just don't ask him what the hardest part has been.

"Just things that I'd rather not discuss. It's this whole issue was extremely hard for everybody," Lt. Vance said.

Vance has been handling reporters for years but this is an unspeakable crime and its been a mass of media camped out in Newtown and each journalist has plenty of questions.

"The hard part is when a reporter has a question about a specific issue that we're not prepared to discuss about for whatever reason," Lt. Vance said.
     
Investigators will be working in this for months and while Vance could retire it doesn't sound like this awful school shooting has him thinking about it.

"That's for another day. I think we are all standing shoulder to shoulder knowing that we still have a lot of work to do and we have to get this work done," Lt. Vance said.